The Castaways | Page 3

long, by eight feet wide, and seven feet
high to the underside of the beams. It was set athwartships, instead of
fore and aft as was at that period more frequently the fashion; and it

was furnished with two bunks, or beds, one over the other, built against
the bulkhead that divided the cabin from that next it. The lower bunk
was "made up" with bed, bedding, and pillows complete, ready for
occupation; but the upper bunk, not being required, had been denuded
of its bedding, leaving only the open framework of the bottom, which
was folded back and secured against the bulkhead, out of the way, thus
leaving plenty of air space above me when I should be turned in. At the
foot of the bunks there was a nice deep, double chest of drawers,
surmounted by an ornamental rack-work arrangement containing a
brace of water-bottles, with tumblers to match, together with vacant
spaces for the reception of such matters as brushes and combs,
razor-cases, and other odds and ends. Then there was a wash-stand,
with a toilet-glass above it, and a cupboard beneath the basin
containing two large metal ewers of fresh water; and alongside the
wash-stand hung a couple of large, soft towels. There was a fine big
bull's eye in the deck overhead, and a circular port in the ship's side, big
enough for me to have crept through with some effort, had I so wished,
the copper frame of which was glazed with plate glass a full inch thick.
Beneath this port was the short sofa, upholstered in black horsehair,
upon which I sat; and, screwed to the ship's side in such a position as to
be well out of the way, yet capable of pretty completely illuminating
the cabin, was a handsome little silver-plated lamp, already lighted,
hung in gimbals and surmounted by a frosted glass globe very prettily
chased with a pattern of flowers and leaves and birds. The bulkheads
were painted a dainty cream colour, with gilt mouldings; a heavy
curtain of rich material screened the door; and the deck of the cabin
was covered with a thick, handsome carpet. "What a contrast," thought
I, "to my miserable, stuffy little dog-hole of a cabin aboard the old
Hebe!" And I sat there so long, meditating upon the times that were
gone, and the scenes of the past, that I lost all consciousness of my
surroundings, and was only awakened from my brown study--or was it
a quiet little nap?--by the loud clanging of the first dinner bell. Thus
admonished, I went to work with a will to get into my dress clothes--for
those were the days when such garments were de rigueur aboard all
liners of any pretensions--and was quite ready to make my way to the
saloon when the second and final summons to dinner pealed forth.

The cuddy, or main saloon of the ship, was on deck, under the full poop,
while the sleeping accommodation was below; consequently by the
time that I had reached the vestibule upon which the cuddy doors
opened, I found myself in the midst of quite a little crowd of more or
less well-dressed people who were jostling each other in a gentle,
well-bred sort of way in their eagerness to get into the saloon. They
were mostly silent, as is the way of the English among strangers, but a
few, here and there, who seemed to have already made each other's
acquaintance, passed the usual inane remarks about the absurdly
inconvenient arrangements generally of the ship. Some half a dozen
stewards were showing the passengers to their places at table, as they
passed in through the doorways; and upon my entrance I was at once
pounced upon by one of the aforesaid stewards, who, in
semi-confidential tones, remarked:
"This way, if you please, sir. It's Cap'n Dacre's orders that you was to
be seated close alongside of him."
As I followed the man down the length of the roomy, handsome
apartment, I could scarcely realise that it was the same that I had seen
when the ship lay loading in the dock. Then, the deck (or floor, as a
landsman would call it) was carpetless, the tables, chairs, sofas, lamps,
and walls of the cabin were draped in brown holland, to protect them
from the all-penetrating dust and dirt that is always flying about, more
or less, during the handling of cargo, and the room was lighted only by
the skylights; now, I found myself in a scene as brilliant, after its own
fashion, as that afforded by the dining-room of a first-class hotel. The
saloon was of the full width of the ship, and some forty feet long by
about eight feet high; the sides and the ceiling were panelled, and
painted in cream, light